“Some monsters are born. Others are made. And the worst ones are raised in shadows.”
[T - 4:00:00]306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAMoMTh379Q
Sayaka Kurogane was still alive—barely.
Deep beneath a crumbling mansion on Caelthorn Island, she was chained, bloodied, and barely conscious. Her breathing was shallow, her pulse slow. The drug hadn’t fully worn off, but her fingers twitched. Her eyes fluttered. The first spark of consciousness was returning.
She didn’t know that above her, eight people were walking into a trap.
Upstairs, the team that had split off earlier arrived at the gates of the mansion.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5s0Sxdw1SV
There were nine total:
Levich Morozov
Luciano Moretti
Avni Rathore
Raiden Kurogane
Three senior scouts
And one extra: Ai Tanaka—a quiet, observant scout girl hand-picked for this mission.
Inside the mansion, the air was thick with dust and tension. The walls were covered in peeling gold wallpaper, and the silence was too perfect.
Lev spoke first: “This place is too quiet. It’s a setup.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhH2S2DKn2
Luce nodded, eyes sharp. “She’s not outside. Sayaka has to be here.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOO4U9UqJJU
Raiden added, “There’s no way she left Caelthorn.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡacS7XeCLwo
Avni unsheathed her blade. “Then why is this mansion untouched?”
Suddenly, Luce stopped.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdRupmaR2S
“This is a trap.”
They all froze.
Luce turned to the group.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCRYrbjpjMT
“We leave. Now.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshRBcXK2xH
Ai immediately added, a little too fast: “Yes. We should leave. Let’s not stay here.”
Raiden looked at her. “You’ve been silent the whole trip. Now you want to run?”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlQPRNymeVz
Lev frowned. “We’re exhausted. We rest, then go.”
That was when Ai panicked. Her hands trembled. Sweat broke on her neck.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxgpK3m3DCe
Avni noticed.
“I’ll take the three scouts out for air,” she said calmly.
Outside, the shadows weren’t still anymore.
Avni saw them. In the bushes. In the trees. Watching.
Their eyes glinted like animals. Oathless. Dozens of them.
Her heart pounded. She crept back in, faster than she’d ever moved.
“LUCE!” she hissed. “That girl—she’s a setup. And there are at least thirty outside.”
Luce slammed the door.
Raiden drew his blade. Lev pushed Ai to the wall.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRlS91mmwE
“You set us up.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4AQy3YcDt
Ai trembled. “I didn’t know it’d be this many! I was told just to get you here!”
Luce’s eyes darkened.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV5Zj3f9Wa2
“You don’t walk out of this.”
They began searching the walls, floor, shelves—
CLANG! A rusted panel behind the fireplace. Luce kicked it open.
A steel hatch led down into the mansion’s underground chamber.
Just then—CRASH!306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8BW2HJeif
A window shattered above. The Oathless were attacking from outside.
Lev turned to Avni.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lHgDNqeU6
“Get the others. We hold here.”
They descended into the depths.
Below the Mansion
Sayaka’s head jerked upright. Voices. Footsteps. Fighting.
Her wrists burned in the cuffs. Her knees collapsed as she struggled.
[T - 3:00:00]
They burst into the chamber.
Twenty or more Oathless turned their heads in unison.
Raiden whispered, “This is suicide.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZy6a4pd9x3
Lev’s fists clenched.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5BJuyvSfU
Luce growled, “No. This is personal.”
Avni: “You think Sayaka is in here?”
Luce nodded. “This is Rokuro’s doing.” he thought
Rokuro Kurogane. The man who was once destined to become the head of COMA.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlM56vfei8D
Rejected by Lev’s grandfather—Sylus Morozov.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tsvfHdWY7
For that, he killed Lev’s parents.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsp3tcsp1w
Erik’s parents.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqqZN6MjN50
And now, he had given the order…306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDti8cmFkoU
…to execute his own granddaughter. Sayaka.
Ai tried to run again.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP0C4sPMAD9
Luce caught her by the collar.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7mRuJ2t4H
“Where are the others?!”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgrwLdLlBeI
“I told you, I don’t know!” she cried.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGPdaEI0i3
“COMA sees through liars,” Luce said coldly.
Raiden struck her in the gut. She crumpled.
Then the Oathless attacked.
They swarmed. Screamed. They weren’t human anymore.
Sayaka’s eyes widened from behind a steel door.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Xj39vHnwN
She could barely move.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIsGpXkMXmw
But she heard it—Luce’s voice. The sound of steel against flesh.
The Fight Begins
Raiden fought two at once with brutal efficiency.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1EWQMjqsZm
Avni slashed through their ankles and dropped them like trees.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLtHT1PT5io
Lev crushed skulls. No hesitation.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZqMQx2V1I6
But it was Luce who shocked them all.
He moved like a shadow. Calculated. Fluid.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEGpZyohZ5
He strategically downed ten Oathless by himself using a broken pipe and his bare hands.
Lev—silent mid-fight—just stared.
“No wonder he acts like a leader.”
The Three scouts found Sayaka—barely conscious.
“She’s here!” one shouted. “She’s alive!”
They broke the door. Two stayed to guard her. one pulled her out.
[T - 2:00:00]
The last Oathless fell.
One scout had died during the chaos.
The remaining seven stood battered, bruised, but alive.
Sayaka was semi-conscious in Raiden’s arms.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ArgYlcDw6
Avni held her blade to Ai’s neck.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5AyntohsQm
Luce stood over the corpses of Oathless, blood on his arms.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKh3c68FYZR
Lev was silent, still breathing hard.
Outside—48 students accounted for.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrcd4eC8D3
9 entered the mansion.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsbNdlU3Erz
8 came back out alive.
COMA Command Center – Umbra Island
Elda Kurogane watched the red dots.
The final one stopped blinking.
A voice came in:306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8JkPepfVh
“8 rescued. 1 dead. All heirs secured.”
Elda breathed again.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrymyM9uzpU
COMA’s highest council stood behind her.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0zMnNbrxEW
Sylus Morozov. Irina Volkova. Gianluca Moretti. Naoko Rathore. Selene Argyros.
“And Ai Tanaka?” Elda asked.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4eSvaf7uox
“She’s in custody.”
She turned to the room.
“Victory,” Elda said. “COMA wins again.”306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKb5HbBtKZF
But her voice wasn’t celebration. It was war.
ns216.73.216.33da2Rokuro had crossed the line.306Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOMc3sScWtg
The next time… they would march.
and then Add to home screen.